I have just signed up to the boot camp and wanted to ask advice about my skates,

I have had these cheap ones just for fun for a while and wanted to know if they would be ok to start off with at the bootcamp?! They are variflex Odyssey ones and are soft like trainers:

Thank you!

i started with these, and skated on them for 6 months because i was too broke to buy better ones. At the end they were actually held together with tape. They are fine for starter skates, if you get some decent wheels on them, but if find you fucking love roller derby you'll want to upgrade before they are held together with tape.

I have just signed up to the boot camp and wanted to ask advice about my skates,

I have had these cheap ones just for fun for a while and wanted to know if they would be ok to start off with at the bootcamp?! They are variflex Odyssey ones and are soft like trainers:

Thank you!

i started with these, and skated on them for 6 months because i was too broke to buy better ones. At the end they were actually held together with tape. They are fine for starter skates, if you get some decent wheels on them, but if find you fucking love roller derby you'll want to upgrade before they are held together with tape.

Thanks for your replies!

Haha, that is good to know... I just didn't want to turn up and then people look at my feet and be like what the hell...

I saw a post somewhere else about wheels which i'll have a look at, do all wheels fit all skates generally?

Haha, that is good to know... I just didn't want to turn up and then people look at my feet and be like what the hell...

I saw a post somewhere else about wheels which i'll have a look at, do all wheels fit all skates generally?

If you are going to be skating at Cola and Brixton for the 12 weeks fresh meat/rec league sessions you'll want something grippy. You can get away with second rate skates for actually quite a long time if you have good wheels, and good wheels will last so they're a good investment. For CoLA/Brixton you'll want something like Atom Poisons or Radar ghosts/phantoms.

Billys stock the poisons - http://www.billys.co.uk/english/product ... 501&page=1they come in normal width, slim and slim with aluminium hubs. I've never used these, but people rave about them on a slick surface. Bear in mind these are usually sold in sets of 4, unlike the radars, so you'd need to buy 2 sets.

Haha, that is good to know... I just didn't want to turn up and then people look at my feet and be like what the hell...

I saw a post somewhere else about wheels which i'll have a look at, do all wheels fit all skates generally?

If you are going to be skating at Cola and Brixton for the 12 weeks fresh meat/rec league sessions you'll want something grippy. You can get away with second rate skates for actually quite a long time if you have good wheels, and good wheels will last so they're a good investment. For CoLA/Brixton you'll want something like Atom Poisons or Radar ghosts/phantoms.

Billys stock the poisons - http://www.billys.co.uk/english/product ... 501&page=1they come in normal width, slim and slim with aluminium hubs. I've never used these, but people rave about them on a slick surface. Bear in mind these are usually sold in sets of 4, unlike the radars, so you'd need to buy 2 sets.

If you are going to be skating at Cola and Brixton for the 12 weeks fresh meat/rec league sessions you'll want something grippy. You can get away with second rate skates for actually quite a long time if you have good wheels, and good wheels will last so they're a good investment. For CoLA/Brixton you'll want something like Atom Poisons or Radar ghosts/phantoms.

Billys stock the poisons - http://www.billys.co.uk/english/product ... 501&page=1they come in normal width, slim and slim with aluminium hubs. I've never used these, but people rave about them on a slick surface. Bear in mind these are usually sold in sets of 4, unlike the radars, so you'd need to buy 2 sets.

This is indeed very useful. I currently have a pair of Rios (since a lot of you experienced rollergirls say that you started on them, I hope you might be able to answer this): My plan is to use the Rios for a while during the fresh meat programme and eventually switch to Riedells (maybe R3) once I know what kind of more professional skates would be suitable for me. So I would like to buy new bearings and wheels for the Rios that I could definitely later use on Riedells. How do I know what wheels and bearings will fit together + fit both types of skates?

This is indeed very useful. I currently have a pair of Rios (since a lot of you experienced rollergirls say that you started on them, I hope you might be able to answer this): My plan is to use the Rios for a while during the fresh meat programme and eventually switch to Riedells (maybe R3) once I know what kind of more professional skates would be suitable for me. So I would like to buy new bearings and wheels for the Rios that I could definitely later use on Riedells. How do I know what wheels and bearings will fit together + fit both types of skates?

It's the plate that counts. Pretty much all plates (unelss you are a skate geek and deliberately buy something different, or you have really old vintage skates) will bones reds bearings. These which are the best ones to go for in terms of price & performance. You can often find them cheaper on ebay. They are usually sold in packs of 8, you need 16 for your skates. Any derby wheel will fit these bearings.

Slim vs wide is entirely personal preference. When I started i used wide wheels borrowed from an LRGer with loads of spare wheels. I switched to narrow after I borrowed someone else's, and liked the lightness and the extra ability, they suit me down to the ground. Not everyone likes them though. It can take a while of skating before you know what suits you best, so I'm afraid there's no standard answer to this.

Having said that I suspect unless you are a really confident skater wider ones would give you more stability and grip in your early days in the 12 week programme which is on quite a slick floor; you can always change up later as you develop, and there are usually other people who are happy to let you have a go on their wheels.

Is it advisable to buy a gasket for my knees witht hese pads? What is a gasket? Where can I buy them?

Personally, I would get gaskets. I use them even with my decent TSG pads. You can get gaskets at any decent derby supply store, Billys, Skate Attack, Everglides etc. Like with kneepads they vary in price and quality. I have Anarchy ones from Everglides, which are cheap and cheerful but do the job for me.

BoringJade wrote:

is this helmet good enough?

Yes. The most important thing about a helmet isn't so much the brand as the fit. It should fit tight over your head and not move around when the strap is undone. The strap should be snug under your chin. The front of the helmet should be a straight line above your eyebrows. I wish I had a pound for every new skater I've seen with a poorly fitting too big wonky helmet, I'd have about £50.

Different brands come up different sizes. Nutcase (for example) come up quite big, the S/M tehy do is too big for my pea head. The triple 8 small though is the right size for me if i wear a bandana. Most (decent) skate shops would be able to give you the helmet circumference if you contact them so you can make sure it fits right, or you can go to a skateboard shop and buy in person. I tried loads of other people's helmets on until I found one that was small enough for me.

So I'm sure you're the MOST tired of these kind of questions, but I thought I'd give it a go anyway.

I've not wobbled around on a set of wheels for about 15 years, and have zilch equipment. I really want to give it a go, but don't want to go out and spend £££££ and then find out I'm useless!

I've read through many of the posts on here about the importance of knee pads and good wheels / bearings above all else, but just wanted to get some opinions as to where to begin.

Even if I buy the cheapest skates, helmet, etc - looking at the recommended wheels / bearings / pads for newbies, it still looks like an initial spend of around £200. (The wheels and bearings alone come to around £100?) Is this the case, or is there any way around this until I've discovered whether I can move, let alone come to a tryout?

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